Iwata: "Nintendo is not good at competing"

Nintendo has a rich history of innovation and president Satoru Iwata says that tradition remain very much at the heart of the company.

When it works, it really works – just look at the record-breaking success of the DS and Wii. When it doesn’t work, however, it can leave the platform holder languishing alone in the gaming wilderness.

The Bridge reports that Iwata last week gave an interesting explanation of the strategy to an audience at an Osaka business event.

If you do the same thing as others, it will wear you out,” he stated. Nintendo is not good at competing so we always have to challenge [the status quo] by making something new, rather than competing in an existing market.

It’s often called the ‘Blue Ocean Strategy’, looking for something that no one else is working on. When we created the DS, people said it was strange to have a dual display, and people said elderly people don’t play games. But they did. Opening the first door is when things are most interesting.”